HD 7970 gaming performance
Not really: the HD 7970 runs 17 of 102 games at 60+ FPS on 1080p High in our estimates. The AMD Radeon HD 7970 is a basic card for light and older games; here's what it runs and how it stacks up.
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Rough estimate Our index for the HD 7970 is interpolated from similar hardware, not taken from a direct test, so treat these numbers as a rough guide. How we estimate
Summary
The AMD Radeon HD 7970 (2012) is a basic card for light and older games. It has 3 GB of video memory and is rated at 250 W.
With a fast processor it reaches 60 FPS at 1080p High in about 17 of the 102 games we track and 8 at 1440p; 4K is not recommended on it (estimates). Cards in the same class: GTX 780 and Radeon 760M. The next step up is the Radeon 680M, about 4% faster.
HD 7970 specs
| Brand | AMD |
|---|---|
| Released | 2012 |
| Type | Dedicated graphics card |
| Video memory | 3 GB |
| Power (board) | 250 W |
| FPSVibe performance index (est.) | 8 (RTX 4090 = 100, 1440p) |
| FPSVibe 4K index (est.) | 4.4 (RTX 4090 = 100 at 4K), rough estimate |
| Data confidence | Low (rough estimate) |
| Perf per watt (est.) | 3.2 |
| Rank | #125 of 162 cards we track |
Rough estimate Our index for the HD 7970 is interpolated from similar hardware, not taken from a direct test, so treat these numbers as a rough guide.
Data sources
Performance index
- FPSVibe estimate
The index is FPSVibe's own blend of published review results, rescaled onto one scale; it is not copied from any single source. Checked 2026-10-12.
Games the HD 7970 can run
Estimated average FPS on High settings with a Ryzen 7 7800X3D and 32 GB RAM, so the card is the only limit. Sorted by 1080p FPS.
| Game | 1080p | 1440p | 4K |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terraria | 282 | 186 | Not recommended |
| Valorant | 240 | 158 | Not recommended |
| League of Legends | 218 | 144 | Not recommended |
| Left 4 Dead 2 | 145 | 96 | Not recommended |
| Roblox | 145 | 96 | Not recommended |
| Team Fortress 2 | 109 | 72 | Not recommended |
| Among Us | 104 | 69 | Not recommended |
| Minecraft | 87 | 58 | Not recommended |
| Dead by Daylight | 87 | 58 | Not recommended |
| Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition | 77 | 51 | Not recommended |
| The Sims 4 | 77 | 51 | Not recommended |
| Sid Meier's Civilization VI | 69 | 45 | Not recommended |
| Hollow Knight | 62 | 41 | Not recommended |
| GTA V | 60 | 40 | Not recommended |
| Dota 2 | 60 | 40 | Not recommended |
| Stardew Valley | 60 | 60 | Not recommended |
| Risk of Rain 2 | 60 | 40 | Not recommended |
| Cities: Skylines | 58 | 38 | Not recommended |
| The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition | 53 | 35 | Not recommended |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 52 | 34 | Not recommended |
| Fortnite | 49 | 32 | Not recommended |
| Fallout 4 | 49 | 33 | Not recommended |
| Warframe | 46 | 30 | Not recommended |
| Subnautica | 45 | 30 | Not recommended |
| Factorio | 42 | 28 | Not recommended |
| Age of Empires IV | 41 | 27 | Not recommended |
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 39 | 26 | Not recommended |
| Deep Rock Galactic | 36 | 24 | Not recommended |
| Apex Legends | 35 | 23 | Not recommended |
| Dark Souls III | 35 | 23 | Not recommended |
| It Takes Two | 35 | 23 | Not recommended |
| Overwatch 2 | 34 | 22 | Not recommended |
| War Thunder | 34 | 23 | Not recommended |
| Destiny 2 | 33 | 22 | Not recommended |
| Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice | 33 | 22 | Not recommended |
| Rocket League | 31 | 21 | Not recommended |
| Monster Hunter: World | 31 | 20 | Not recommended |
| Genshin Impact | 31 | 20 | Not recommended |
| Honkai: Star Rail | 31 | 20 | Not recommended |
| PUBG: Battlegrounds | 28 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 27 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Ready or Not | 27 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Lies of P | 27 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Resident Evil 2 | 27 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Euro Truck Simulator 2 | 27 | 18 | Not recommended |
| Valheim | 26 | 17 | Not recommended |
| God of War | 26 | 17 | Not recommended |
| Doom Eternal | 25 | 17 | Not recommended |
| Call of Duty: Warzone | 24 | 16 | Not recommended |
| Hell Let Loose | 24 | 16 | Not recommended |
| Diablo IV | 24 | 16 | Not recommended |
| Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered | 24 | 16 | Not recommended |
| Delta Force | 21 | 14 | Not recommended |
| Lethal Company | 21 | 14 | Not recommended |
| No Man's Sky | 21 | 14 | Not recommended |
| Hades II | 20 | 13 | Not recommended |
| Total War: Warhammer III | 19 | 12 | Not recommended |
| World of Warcraft | 19 | 12 | Not recommended |
| EA Sports FC 25 | 18 | 12 | Not recommended |
| Sea of Thieves | 18 | 12 | Not recommended |
| Far Cry 6 | 18 | 12 | Not recommended |
| Resident Evil 4 | 18 | 12 | Not recommended |
| Resident Evil Village | 18 | 12 | Not recommended |
| Elden Ring | 16 | 11 | Not recommended |
| Elden Ring Nightreign | 16 | 11 | Not recommended |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 16 | 11 | Not recommended |
| Sid Meier's Civilization VII | 16 | 10 | Not recommended |
| Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege | 15 | 10 | Not recommended |
| Helldivers 2 | 15 | 10 | Not recommended |
| Phasmophobia | 15 | 10 | Not recommended |
| Ghost of Tsushima | 15 | 10 | Not recommended |
| Battlefield 2042 | 14 | 9 | Not recommended |
| Path of Exile 2 | 14 | 9 | Not recommended |
| Satisfactory | 14 | 9 | Not recommended |
| Hogwarts Legacy | 13 | 9 | Not recommended |
| Black Myth: Wukong | 13 | 8 | Not recommended |
| The Finals | 13 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Baldur's Gate 3 | 13 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Horizon Forbidden West | 13 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 12 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Marvel Rivals | 12 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Monster Hunter Wilds | 12 | 8 | Not recommended |
| Rust | 11 | 7 | Not recommended |
| Dragon's Dogma 2 | 11 | 7 | Not recommended |
| Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 | 11 | 7 | Not recommended |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 10 | 7 | Not recommended |
| Assassin's Creed Shadows | 10 | 7 | Not recommended |
| F1 24 | 10 | 6 | Not recommended |
| Split Fiction | 10 | 6 | Not recommended |
| Battlefield 6 | 9 | 6 | Not recommended |
| Palworld | 9 | 6 | Not recommended |
| Final Fantasy VII Rebirth | 9 | 6 | Not recommended |
| Alan Wake 2 | 8 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | 8 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Starfield | 8 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Cities: Skylines II | 8 | 5 | Not recommended |
| ARK: Survival Ascended | 7 | 4 | Not recommended |
| Kingdom Come: Deliverance II | 7 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Doom: The Dark Ages | 7 | 4 | Not recommended |
| Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl | 7 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Silent Hill 2 | 7 | 5 | Not recommended |
| Indiana Jones and the Great Circle | 6 | 4 | Not recommended |
4K is not recommended on the HD 7970 (integrated graphics or 4 GB of video memory or less).
Rough estimate Our index for the HD 7970 is interpolated from similar hardware, not taken from a direct test, so treat these numbers as a rough guide.
Estimated FPS. Numbers come from the FPSVibe model, not measured benchmarks. How we estimate
Similar graphics cards
More graphics card tools
HD 7970 FAQs
Is the HD 7970 good for gaming?
It's a basic card for light and older games. Estimated with a fast CPU: 60+ FPS at 1080p High in 17 of 102 popular games, and 8 at 1440p.
Can the HD 7970 run Cyberpunk 2077?
Estimated with a Ryzen 5 5600 and 16 GB RAM: about 21 FPS on Low and 12 FPS on High at 1080p.
How much VRAM does the HD 7970 have?
3 GB. That's tight for new games; lower texture settings help.
What power supply do I need for the HD 7970?
The card is rated at 250 W. As a rough rule, a good-quality 500 W power supply covers it plus a typical gaming CPU. Check the card maker's recommendation for your exact model.
HD 7970 vs GTX 780: which is faster?
The HD 7970 and the GTX 780 perform about the same across 102 games at 1440p High in our estimates (within 4%).